Not This Time
by Princess of Love and Hate
Summary: Cloud meets a young boy...and finds his light again. Sora tries to take it from him...poor Sora. Yaoi, Cloud x Demyx. Slightly AU, Cloud is OOC...


**Hey!! Now I'm bringing you one of the ones I promised: my Clemyx!!! I'm like obsessed with that pairing. And I just said like. Whatever, can't escape it in California. My OC's are mentioned, but they aren't really that important to the fic. If you don't like yaoi, don't read it. Also, I wrote Cloud severely OOC. **_**Severely.**_** You'll see what I mean. Thanx for reading. Reviews are always nice!**

**Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I don't own Cloud, Demyx or any of the other Kingdom Hearts characters. **

**Not This Time**

Cloud stalked through the streets of Radiant Garden, ignoring the rain. Thoughts flew across his mind like lightning, there one moment, gone the next. Hours passed as he mused. He was pulled abruptly from his thoughts when he tripped over someone who was equally lost in thought. The stranger bolted to his feet and clumsily pulled Cloud to his feet. " I'm sorry! I should have put a cone or something next to me so no one would trip over me!"

Cloud looked into the teenager's eyes and laughed. "Don't worry about it. If there had been a cone there, I probably would've tripped over it and fallen on top of you-?" He looked at the teen questioningly.

"I'm Demyx," the teen answered, extending his hand. " You are?"

For the first time, Cloud noticed the boy's black attire and the blue sitar lying behind him. "Cloud. Are you part of Organization XIII?"

There was something close to fear in his eyes as he answered, "Yeah." Cloud could tell that Demyx was not much of a fighter (compared to Cloud anyway), so he changed the subject to calm him down.

"Do you play?"

Demyx nodded. "If it's raining when I play, Rixlet comes to dance. It's fun to watch."

"Will you play for me?" Cloud asked, cheeks tinged with pink. As an answer, Demyx picked up his sitar and strummed a few gentle chords. Cloud leaned his sword against the bailey wall. Turning back to Demyx, he lifted his face to the rain, trying to remember Lightning's dancing lessons. Dancing had always been his older sister's forte.

Uncertainly, he shifted onto the balls of his feet and then… he danced. It seemed slow and graceful, but also quick and passionate, depending on the beat of the music. Or maybe cloud was the beat. Demyx couldn't tell. He was having hard time playing, thanks to the way Cloud's shirt kept lifting to tease him with a tantalizing stretch of skin around his hip.

Finally, the rain stopped, and with it, the dancing. Sweat rolled off the older blonde's toned body. Turning to Demyx, he said, "Hey, you don't mind if I take off my shirt, do you?" Demyx quickly shook his head and turned an interesting shade of red as Cloud pulled off his shirt, after he'd tugged off his gloves.

This action revealed the bandages on Cloud's left arm. Forgetting his momentary embarrassment, Demyx ran across the small courtyard. He grabbed Cloud's right arm as the older man draped his clothing over his sword. Cloud looked at him in surprise as Demyx exclaimed, "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to make you dance when you're injured! You should have told-" Cloud silenced him with a kiss.

It was a very short, chaste kiss, with Cloud breaking away to lean his forehead against Demyx's, eyes closed peacefully.

Demyx wasn't done yet. He pushed Cloud onto his back and fiercely captured his mouth, unzipping his cloak so Cloud could explore his muscles as he did the same. He shivered at Cloud's gentle touch and slipped his tongue into the other blonde's mouth to return the favor.

"Be my light," Cloud whispered, ten minutes later when they came up for air. "There's no way you don't have a heart, so please, stay with me."

Demyx leaned into Cloud, who was leaning on his sword. He nodded. "Okay, just let me go back and tell them I'm leaving, like Roxas did. They'll probably give me a last mission, but after that, I'll come find you."

Cloud pressed his lips to the top of Demyx's head. "I'll be waiting."

***********

Not too much later…..

Cloud was keeping his promise. Everyday, he visited that little courtyard. Leon stopped him as he headed for it this time.

To Cloud's questioning look, Leon replied, "Sora's in your new hangout, beating up on a Nobody. Stay put until he's done."

Much to Leon's surprise, Cloud didn't. Instead, he started running towards the courtyard as fast as he could, in a slight state of panic.

***********

What was left of the castle gate was slick with water. Demyx lay crumpled in a corner, his sitar dissolving into more water. Pleadingly, he looked up at Sora. "Please, don't kill me. After I attempt to kill you, they said I could leave, whether I succeed or fail. So please, just let me go."

Sora shook his head as he raised the Keyblade. "Sorry. You're too dangerous for me to just let you go." He closed his eyes as he swung.

The keyblade met resistance with a mighty clang. Sora's eyes snapped open to behold Cloud kneeling in front of Demyx, sword serving to halt the keyblade.

"Cloud!" Sora and Demyx said in unison.

Carefully, Cloud turned around, sliding his sword into the rack across his back, so the keyblade couldn't get past it. He picked up Demyx, turning so abruptly that the keyblade clattered to the ground. Almost angrily, he pushed past Sora, Donald, and Goofy, with Demyx curled up in his protective arms.

Sora grabbed Cloud's shoulder and spun him around just as Demyx kissed his neck before falling asleep. Cloud didn't deign to respond to Sora's surprised look. Instead, he called upon the ether that mixed freely with his blood. He cast a Curaga on Demyx, wincing as his left arm started "bleeding" again.

"Cloud…" Sora said, obviously confused, "What are you doing?"

The black liquid dripped from his arm as Cloud turned his back on Sora. "He's my light. What do you think I'm doing?"

Unsure of what to do, Sora opted for violence. He shifted to Master form and attacked Cloud with double keyblades. Cloud spun around, faster than thought, seamlessly shifting Demyx's weight onto his right arm as he drew his sword with his left. He knocked the keyblade away, causing Sora to back flip away. He regarded the trio with guarded eyes, sword extended towards them threateningly.

"Cloud! He's a Nobody!" Sora yelled. "Are you really willing to risk your life for his?!" Sora shifted into his alert position, hoping to emphasize the bluff.

Cloud chuckled menacingly. "Are you willing to die trying to take him from me? 'Cause I think we both know who'll walk away if you try to fight me."

Sora shrugged. "That may be- but I have to try." He lunged quickly as Goofy threw his shield and Donald cast Blizzaga. Cloud leapt straight up, landing on the other end of the courtyard. Carefully, he set Demyx on the ground and took up a defensive position in front of him.

Cloud's fighting was almost as graceful as his dancing. He slashed and parried, calling on his own powerful ether to combat Donald and occasionally Sora. He found an opening and lunged through it to slash Donald and Goofy at close range. Sora launched himself at Demyx, taking advantage of Cloud's distraction.

The older blonde threw himself backwards, using his left arm to stop himself in front of Demyx. The cloth and the bandages scraped off, revealing the Geostigma beneath. He hefted his sword and swung, smacking Sora across the plaza.

The black "blood" ran down his arm as he stared the keyblade bearer and his friends down. Wickedly, he whistled up a wind that held the three heroes immobile in midair as he slowly took the bandages off his sword. Cloud lifted the sword so it rested on his right shoulder. He seemed to throw it off his shoulder, but his hand never left the hilt. Yet, Sora and his comrades were suddenly surrounded by about eight glowing swords.

Cloud looked up at them as he began to glow orange. "Are you ready? Lucky for you, Leon needs you. Otherwise, I'd break bad on you guys. As it is, I'm gonna have to knock you out." He leaped into the air.

He moved so fast that he seemed to be in many places at once. Orange after images lingered above the saviors of the world as Cloud flew around, picking up and dropping swords as he used them.

Finally, he landed, swords standing in the ground around him, and caught the omnisword as it fell. Solemnly, he let the heroes fall. They landed, knocked out for at least a few minutes.

Cloud called his swords back into one as he walked back to Demyx. He hefted him into his arms, carefully making sure Demyx's head didn't get Geostigma plasma on it. He jumped to the top of the bailey wall and ran to the darkest corner of Hollow Bastion.

***********

Demyx woke hours later, his heart in his throat. As the memories of his fight with Sora and of Cloud rescuing him came back to him, he calmed down. Finally, he took in his bleak surroundings.

Cloud leaned against a wall, asleep. His left arm was mottled black, oozing small amounts of an equally black liquid. He winced occasionally in his sleep, as if it pained him. But he was asleep.

Slowly, Demyx crawled over to him. He didn't attempt to wake Cloud, just leaned against the wall to his right. Almost hesitantly, Cloud shifted in his sleep, drawn by the promise of warmth. He leaned into Demyx until his head rested on the younger blonde's lap. Demyx smiled as he smoothed the blonde's spiky hair between his fingers. He brushed sensitive fingers over Cloud's lips before falling back into sleep's embrace.

***********

Cloud snapped awake from the pain in his arm. The corrupted blood was pouring forth profusely. He cursed quietly, not wanting to wake Demyx. It was then that he realized that his head was in Demyx's lap. Slowly, he looked up at the dirty blonde. Deep blue eyes met his calmly as Demyx brought his hands up to rest on Cloud's infected arm.

Demyx's hands glowed a light blue and a cool feeling spread through Cloud, Demyx's hands rubbing up and down his arm gently. Demyx's eyes began to glow white as he released what he could of the stigma into the atmosphere, instinctively knowing that no one here would be affected by it.

Minutes later, Demyx abruptly dropped his hands, panting and staring in dismay at Cloud's arm. What had been meant to pull the sickness out of Cloud's body completely had only done enough o change the mottled black skin to mottled gray.

Demyx closed his eyes and let his head fall back against the wall, muttering, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry," over and over again.

Cloud pushed himself up so Demyx and he were eye to eye. Cautiously, he leaned forward and kissed the younger blonde. Then he leaned his forehead against Demyx's and said, "It's not your fault. Thank you."

Demyx pulled Cloud to him, much like a child holding a stuffed animal. "Please don't die," he whispered into Cloud's hair.

"I'll try," Cloud murmured as sleep claimed him again.

***********

A feminine voice screamed Cloud's name over and over. She shrieked, "Only you can save my people! And saving them saves you! Bring your light and come back to me! Or we all die!" her crying voice cut off abruptly.

***********

"Mother..?" Cloud whispered in his sleep. Suddenly, he bolted upright, surprising Demyx as he wondered aloud, "The Goddess. Gaia. What did she mean?" He stood up and yelled to no one in particular, "I'm not the Ancient! That's Aerith!"

"Um, Cloud?" Demyx asked hesitantly, "What's going on?"

"She said that if I cure her, I'm saved. Must have meant the Lifestream. But why me?"

"Who's she?" Demyx again tried to get Cloud's attention.

"The Goddess. Gaia. The Lifestream. Call her what you will." Cloud paced back and forth. "She wants me to go back to my world so I can heal her and she can heal everything. Including me."

Demyx leapt to his feet excitedly. "But that's great! If she heals you, you won't have to leave me!"

Cloud took Demyx's face in his hands. "I know. But she wants me to bring you along." He shook his head. "I can't expose you to that much danger."

Demyx stood on tiptoe to kiss Cloud. Then he said, "I'm going whether you want to take me or not."

"I can't risk losing you."

"If it's dangerous enough that you could lose me, do you really think I'm gonna let you go alone and risk losing you?"

"…Fine," Cloud huffed. Then Demyx sealed the deal with a kiss.

***********

**See? Told ya Cloud was OOC. But it was fun to write, so I don't mind. Much thanx to MidnightSpiral for typing it up for me. She says I type too slow. Whatever. **

**Thanks for reading! Reviews are always welcome!**

**MidnightSpiral: Review? For Clemyx luvers everywhere? No..? *sob* My hand hurts again…**

**She's being weird again… **


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